The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1887-06-15
AGAINST CHARLESTON.

40" y JcuIS uBO ODaTlCSCOn was the MECCA
of the merchants of upper Carolina. But
the railroads havo SO arranged frcights
that 1t is just as cheap and quicker to
get their goods directly from New York,
and their trade has flowed thither. AS
an instance of the unjust discrimination
against Charleston, cite fertilizers
her chief product. The rate from
Charleston to Spartanburg, about two
hundred miles, is 81 ton. From Rich
mond, Va, ovcr twico as far, it is but
$l.2o ton-a discrimination against
this city of nearly l0G per cent. Is this
right? Should railroads of tho State be
permitted to break down tho business of
the principal city of the State? Charles
ton Is naturally the port of South Caro-
lima. Sho is entitled to the trade Of the
State, and she would have it if she could
get fair showing, and the State should
SEQ to 1t that she has that opportunity.
Ihls policy OF tho railroads has been
ruinous to the States prosperity. 1t has
stopped her small factories, saldled the
farmers with debt, and ruined our inter
nal commerce.
REMEDY FOR THE WRONG.
Is there no remedy for this wrong?
Have the people no rights to bo regard
ed? This has been the claim that the
railroads. have set up. They assumed
that the stockholders were the absolute
owners of the roads, and any attempted
regulation by the Government was re-
PEELED as an unwarranted infringement
on private right. During the weak and
trucking rule of the Radicals this bold
assumption was acquicsced in. 1t is
now absolutely exploded. 1t is now
held III every State in tho nation that
the railroads are public highways, con
structed for the benefit of the people.
That the management of these highways
Is given to corporation by the State, as
trustees of her sovereign power, q trust
not to be abused. The power should be
exercised with equity and 'usticc, as the
State would exercise it. The State could
not Justly discriminate between it's citi-
zcns, and its agents should not be pcr-
mlttcd to do so. The State could not
with equity build up one of its cities at
the expense of other cities, and its
agents should not be permitted to do so.
The State would not sacrifice the indus
tries and prosperity of her people to the
dement, OF foreign competitors, and the
railroads should not be allowed to do so.
She State, if she owned the roads, would
not do these things even for gain, nor
should the railroads. If the stockhold-
ers can make profit lcgitimatcly, they
arc entitled to it; if they cannot, they
have simply made bad investment and
must abide by it.
The right OF the State to restrain and
lcgulatc the railroads is now undisputcd.
lhc question arises, how is this to be
done effectively? We have attempted to
do SO by Il railroad commission. [ do
not know what they have done; | do not
lmpuSn their actions. But this we do
know, that this sitting and pernicious
policy OF discrimination against home
enterprise has sprung up during their
control, and the condition of affairs is
infinitely worse now than before their
interference.
/ have attempted to show that our
present need is low distributing rates
rates to our home producers as cheap in
PROPORTION to distance as those granted
to their foreign competitors. This, |
believe, can be easily, cheaply and
effectively secured.
a UNIFORM RATE FOR ALL SHIPPERS.
Under the Inter State law all through
rates must be reasonable and equitable.
These rates must be public. This we
cannot interfere with and would not.
But this State can pass law providing
that whatever rate per mile the roads fix
for through freight, that same rate shall
be granted to our local shippers with the
cost of extra handling added. OF course
it would be unjust to require them to
load and haul freight the first mile for
the same amount for which they merely
Inc, o,,li n N 4. Al
have been amply paid for loading, shift
ing and starting the car, there seems no
good reason why they should charge our
own shippers more for merely continu-
ing to haul it than they charge to for
cign shippers for exactly the same ser
vice.
a liberal allowance should bo made
for this cost OF handling. There are but
twenty classes OF freight. The General
Assembly could appoint committee to
meet during vacation to take testimony
as to this cost. This charge should in
clude not only tho cost of loading, but
the cost of extra shifting and starting.
1t should be regulated in Justice to the
railroads and to the people, Tho local
rate should be based on the actual cost
of transportation, and not on the basis
OF whatever the traffic will bear IN
der the most liberal allowance it will
never be found that it costs over one
third as much to ship carload of guano
twelve miles as it does to ship it 400
miles, and that, too, when it is loaded
by the shipper
When once the through rate per mile
is fixed by the railroads and published,
and when the cost for extra handling is
ascertaincd and established by law, the
rights OF the shipper become so plain
that no expensive railroad commission is
necessary to protect them. Ho knows
the rate per milo, the distance ho has
shipped and the extra cost for handling
the class of freight offered. Whether he
has been overcharged, is question of
simple fact with which the Courts can
deal, and penal statute is ample pro-
lection.
But whether the remedy / have sug
gested is the best or not, the evil to bo
remedied exists. 1t is an oppressive in
cubus on the prosperity of South Caro-
lima. The interests OF South Carolina
are dear to every one of lier sons, and
especially to the members of the Press.
-. r.. H. a